What to Do When a Parent Dies Without a Will
Key Takeaways
- Immediate steps include ordering death certificates, securing the property, petitioning for an administrator, and consulting an attorney.
- Order several certified copies of the death certificate before contacting banks, insurers, or government agencies.
- Secure the home, vehicle, and other valuable property while the family sorts out the rest of the estate.
- A surviving spouse’s share depends on whether the surviving descendants are also the spouse’s own children.
- Without a surviving spouse, the estate passes to children first, then parents and siblings as a group.
When a parent dies without a will, Missouri families are often left asking what to do when a parent dies without a will. The immediate answer: order several certified copies of the death certificate, secure the parent’s property, petition the probate court to appoint an administrator, and consult a probate attorney as soon as possible. Missouri law calls this process intestate succession, and it determines how assets pass to survivors based on an order set by state law. TdD Attorneys at Law helps families across St. Louis manage each of those steps.
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What Happens When Someone Dies Without a Will?
When a parent dies without a will, Missouri law refers to this as dying intestate. No legal document controls how the estate passes to heirs. Instead, the state’s rules of descent decide who receives property based on family relationship. A surviving spouse, children, or other relatives may have a claim, depending on who survived the parent. Without anyone named to take charge, the court steps in to appoint someone who can.
What Are the First Steps to Take?
The period immediately after a parent’s death can feel overwhelming, especially without a will to guide the next steps. Missouri families still need to move quickly on a few practical tasks before probate, the court process that oversees how an estate is settled, can begin, and knowing what to do when a parent dies without a will can help prevent unnecessary delays.
Gathering Documents and Beginning the Probate Process
Order several certified copies of the death certificate right away, since banks, insurers, and government agencies each require an original copy. The parent’s financial records, property deeds, and insurance or retirement paperwork are worth locating early, since they show what the estate actually includes.
Family members should also secure the home, vehicle, and other valuable property while sorting through those documents. After those steps are done, notifying banks and the Social Security Administration comes next, along with determining whether the estate is small enough to skip formal probate under Missouri’s simplified transfer process.
Who Inherits If There Is No Will?
Missouri’s rules of descent, introduced above, spell out exactly who stands to inherit and in what order. A surviving spouse typically receives the entire estate if the parent had no surviving descendants, meaning children or, if a child passed away first, that child’s own children. If those descendants are also the spouse’s own children, Missouri’s general rules of descent grant the spouse the first $20,000 of the estate plus half of what remains, with the descendants sharing the rest.
A child from an earlier relationship changes that outcome: the spouse’s share drops to half of the estate instead of the larger share above. If no spouse survives, the estate passes to the children, or their descendants, in equal shares. When there are none, Missouri law next looks to the parents and siblings together, then to grandparents, aunts, and uncles, and more distant relatives if needed.
Locate missing estate documents: Read How to Find Out If Someone Left a Will? to learn how to search personal files and safe deposit boxes, contact estate planning attorneys, or query county probate court records.
How Is the Estate Administered Without a Will?
Since there was no will to name an executor, the probate court appoints a personal representative, or administrator, to manage the estate. If the person with priority to serve as administrator does not file within 20 days of the death, Missouri law allows any other interested person to petition the probate court for appointment.
Once appointed, the administrator must inventory the parent’s assets, notify creditors, and pay valid debts and taxes from estate funds. Only then can the administrator distribute what remains among the heirs under Missouri’s intestacy laws.
Understand estate planning integrity: Read
Talk to TDD Law About Intestate Estate Administration
Missouri’s intestacy process is easier to manage with the right legal guidance. TdD Attorneys at Law helps St. Louis families understand what to do when a parent dies without a will, from securing assets to petitioning the court for an administrator. Our attorneys can guide you through each step and help protect your parent’s estate for the rightful heirs. Call (314) 276-1318 today to schedule a consultation.
Ted Disabato
Ted D. Disabato is the Managing Member of TdD Attorneys at Law LLC, Broker/Realtor of TdD Premier Real Estate and The Realty Shop, and partner in VUE Title LLC and VUE Mortgage LLC – providing his clients cradle to grave service. If you’re looking for an experienced St. Louis estate planning lawyer, make sure to contact Ted Disabato today.